The human body is biologically optimally adapted to its environment. Therefore it is also able to regenerate and detoxify itself. To do this, it starts a process in the metabolism in which pollutants and foreign substances are transformed into excretable substances through various chemical processes.
For the detoxification of the body Organs such as the liver, gall bladder, kidneys, intestines, lymph, lungs and skin are essential. The intestine z. B. excretes most of the waste products from the blood through the stool, and what remains goes through the veins into the liver. In order to convert poisons and make them water-soluble, they are transported via the bloodstream and disposed of in the kidneys, while the fat-soluble components are stored in the bile.
Detoxification prevents illness in many ways and can be supported by methods such as: B. by purifying or deacidifying the body.
What is the body's own detox?
In addition to the physiological metabolic processes, there are also substances that are not excreted directly via the kidneys or the intestines. The body also repeatedly absorbs foreign substances from food and nature, as well as substances that are synthetically produced. Such are z. B. pesticides, heavy metals, pharmaceuticals, drugs, various substances of malnutrition, acids from food, preservatives and others.
In order to counteract the absorption of such pollutants, an independent process of detoxification begins in the body, whereby its own waste products are also produced, which must also be eliminated. That can be B. ammonium or intestinal gases.
The kidney cleanses and filters the blood. Water-soluble toxins are bound to glucoronide, broken down and excreted through the urine. The kidney must be supported with sufficient fluid. The more fluid that is excreted, the more toxins are released from the body.
Fat-soluble toxins from the liver find their way back into the blood via the intestines and bile. Minor solvents such as alcohol are excreted through the lungs, while toxoids such as arsenic or thallium are excreted through the skin and hair.
Large molecular substances, pesticides or heavy metals, on the other hand, cannot be excreted as easily. They end up in the connective and adipose tissue, in the cells, in the joints and muscles.
Function & task
The body's own detoxification takes place in three important phases. In the first, enzymes activate foreign and pollutants. In the second, the activated foreign substances are combined to form smaller active groups and are chemically changed to the outside via the kidneys or bile. In the third phase, which is also called detoxification, they are released from the inside of the cell, e.g. B. in the intestine.
The body does not necessarily recognize whether the substances are biologically active or toxic. This means that the process of the enzymes can also have the opposite effect, i.e. a non-toxic substance is converted into a toxic one. For example, some drugs are administered in an inactive form and only converted into an active ingredient by the body's own detoxification process. This happens z. B. with sleeping pills like chlordiazepoxide.
The most important enzymes in the first phase are light-absorbing heme proteins such as the cytochromes. They are responsible for oxidation, reduction and hydroxylation, but can also bring about intermediate stages that are dangerous for the organism. The oxidation reactions take place through monooxygenases, dehydrogenases and peroxidases, reduction reactions through cytochrome P450 and gutathione peroxidase, hydrolysis reactions through esterases and hydrolases.
In the second phase, intermediate products and foreign substances that have arisen in the first phase are bound in a water-soluble manner. Toxic reaction products, also called conjugates, that occurred with the first phase are now detoxified, i.e. H. They are either further metabolized or excreted. This happens through the kidneys, sweat or breathing.
The third phase is used for the transport processes that take place in the bloodstream, in the lymphatic system and via transport proteins. The latter are not always metabolized.
When there is talk of the conversion of a non-active form into an active one, as by certain drugs, it is called poisoning. The substance is transformed into a toxic metabolite. For example, methanol on its own is relatively harmless, but is broken down into formaldehyde and later into formic acid. It is similar with morphine, which turns into morphine-6-glucuronide in the liver and is much stronger than the morphine itself. Such processes are known as first-pass effects.
Illnesses & ailments
The well-known doctor Paracelsus prophesied health through detoxification in the 15th century. Nowadays the pollution and the pollutants in nature and food have increased strongly. Heavy metals such as mercury in dental fillings, lead from tap water and cadmium from tobacco are just some of the external toxins that have a harmful effect on the organism. In addition, heavy metals repeatedly find their way from the soil into various foods such as meat, fish or vegetables. They are cell poisons that disrupt metabolic processes even in the smallest concentration. They produce free radicals which, with the destruction of the body's cells, can lead to long-term organ and tissue damage.
If the body's own detoxification no longer works properly, withdrawal symptoms occur more and more frequently, as the body can no longer process and excrete the pollutants. This can be due to disorders of the organs themselves or to a metabolic disease. More and more metabolic waste products settle in the body and cause disease. Such are z. B. uremia or even hepatic coma.
To prevent this, drainage and detoxification therapy is required. These methods are among the basics of naturopathy. This counteracts the toxicity overload in the body. To support the body in its own detoxification, there are z. B. Herbal remedies that stimulate the metabolism and improve the excretory functions. These are, for example, natural absorbents such as peat active ingredients, chlorella algae, birch charcoal or other homeopathic remedies.
